Beer in the Bay: Anchor releases Christmas Ale and HenHouse plots major expansion

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The snowflake lights may be lit up along Market Street, but really, there's just one true bellwether of Christmas season: the release of Anchor Brewing's Christmas Ale. This year, the beer has just been released in two sizes — gold-foiled magnum-sized bottles and in six packs — and per a press release, it's "complex and full in flavor, packed with toasty cocoa notes, roasted malts and strong aromas of resinous pine."

Much is afoot at HenHouse. The North Bay brewery has an ambitious $4.5 million plan to grow and expand the company, announcing the forthcoming hire of more than 40 people over the next two years as well as an objective to get beer into even more bars and restaurants. Additionally, as founder Collin McDonnell tells SFGATE, the brewery is planning to eventually kick off a bottle club program "as soon as we can keep up with the demand for sour and wood aged beer in our tasting rooms." With all the changes though, fans shouldn't worry that the brewery will forget its main priority: freshness. As McDonnell tells the Press Democrat, "We have the most aggressive shelf life of any brewery out there."

At last, the deep East Bay will get their very own Fieldwork location this week. Roughly nine months after SFGATE reported that the Berkeley brewery would be opening a taproom in San Ramon, that day will finally arrive on Thursday, November 8 at 11 a.m. Follow their Instagram for updates.

South Bay locals and carnivores may want to consider heading over to AT&T Park this Saturday, November 10, when a number of local breweries and restaurants will serve up bacon and beer at the, well, Bacon and Beer Classic. Get more details here.

The free beer shuttle is back for November this Wednesday, Nov. 7, when the San Francisco Brewers Guild brings around the buses to take beer fans to a bunch of "South Side" breweries: Harmonic, Magnolia (the Dogpatch location), Triple Voodoo, Barebottle, Ferment.Drink.Repeat, or Laughing Monk and Seven Stills. The night begins with a "Meet the Brewers" event at Speakeasy, where its head brewer Phil Cutti will be hanging for the release of their South Side Rye beer.

Homebrewers from all over Oakland will convene at Old Kan this Sunday, Nov. 11 for the 2nd Annual Oakland Unified School District Dad's Club Homebrew Competition & Fundraiser. The fest raises money for the A-Z Fund, which "gives grants to Oakland's high-need public schools for field trips, art, music, sports, and other underfunded activities." Tickets for the event are on sale now.